Thursday, June 02, 2011

2011 Cannes Red Carpet - day 6 and part 1 of day 7

Here is the next installment on the Cannes red carpet post. I didn't get quite as many outfits critiqued as I might have liked. Instead, I went back and added in the events the people were attending to provide a bit of reference and to break up the (seemingly endless) parade of images.

Even though I didn't finish critiquing Day 7, I'm including the outfits from the movie premiere that I've critiqued. I'll post the remainder of Day 7 tomorrow.

Let's get started, shall we?

Day 6 (May 16, 2011)

Tree of Life premiere

Zoe Saldana in Armani Prive

The skirt's stripes and pleating and bow and slit are both flattering and eye-catching. This is a great thing because it draws the eye away from that plastic cone of a bodice.

Angelina Jolie in Atelier Versace

Of course she looks amazing in this silhouette; she can wear just about anything and look gorgeous. The ruching, band on the bodice, bow, and slit make this dress look slimming on her. Not that she's big - in fact, her arms are too skinny - but there's no harm in emphasizing one's best parts, is there? The only problem with this dress is the colour, which makes her skin look creamy, pinky smooth but that makes her hair look more green and less lush than it is.

Anna Dello Russo in Alberta Ferretti

Have I misunderstood the point of Cannes? All this time I thought it was about movies but with so many bridal-type gowns appearing on the red carpet I wonder if the movies are a front for a secret marriage cult. If she does get married she would be well advised to stay away from this style of dress: the poufy skirt makes her look bigger and shorter than she is.

Gwen Stefani in Stella McCartney (with Gavin Rossdale)

How many jumpsuits with a deep vee neckline have we seen at Cannes? Clearly they're coming back. Interestingly, this jumpsuit is quite similar to the one that Iman wore to the Met gala (shown there, too); Gwen's has sheer sleeves but otherwise I'd say they're the same. I liked Iman's jumpsuit and I love this Gwen's and not just because it fits better; from her hair to her toes, she's well-put together and looking decidedly sexy but not tasteless. And I love her in black.

Jessica Chastain in couture Zac Posen

Normally I'd be oohing and aahing over this lovely gown but I'm too distracted by the shorter skirt pieces in front. They move and fly when she walks, which is great, but the length bothers me. This dress would be gorgeous if it was hemmed to either the length of the shorter panels or the length of the underskirt. Instead we have this crazy hybrid that looks both disproportionate and unbalanced.

I'd love love love this dress if the skirt was all one length when she was standing still because I love the ruching, design lines, and colour both by itself and against her skin. The overall look is a bit unfinished, however. A necklace or hair ornament would have completed the outfit.

Mia Wasikowska in Valentino Couture

The band of lace covering her boobs is more matronly than it is sexy. Even though the top is sheer it's also the same colour as her skin. Sheer tops like this are sexy when the colour contrasts with the wearer's skin in some way as opposed to matching the skin colour. Imagine this dress is black or red or blue - sexy and attractive, right? Really any kind of contrast colour on this dress would be welcome because the overall style and silhouette is so drab.

Li Bing Bing in Elie Saab Couture

There's a bit of bridal about this dress even with the crotch-high front slit and deep vee sweetheart neckline. Take those away and it's a bridal gown.... yawn. Even though the colour is lovely against her skin it would be so much more attractive if it was another coloiur.

Fan Bing Bing in Oscar de la Renta

She sure knows how to dress to impress, doesn't she? This silhouette is gorgeous on her (like everything else she wore(, the colour is fantastic, and she's perfectly accessorized. Normally I don't even like this silhouette or colour but on her it work.

Zoe Saldana in Vionnet

Most people aren't brave enough to wear a print that looks like giant hands cupping her boobs so you know she's got a lot of inner confidence. Or she likes having her boobs squeezed and she's sending out a message to everyone who's watching. Unfortunately the dress is otherwise quite shapeless and a bit casual; for all we know she's got a bathing suit underneath.

Zhang Zilin in Elie Saab

Isn't this outfit beautiful? I'm so completely in love with the bodice and the way the fabric swoops from both sides up to the shoulder and is trimmed with delicate lace. I love the swooping fabric on on the skirt that helps to form the train (and that defines the slit in front) and the light belt which adds interest and contrast. She looks so elegant and put together here.

Hofit Golan

It looks like the dress was deisgned to have lots of pleating and ruching and either she bought it in a size too small or the pleats were ironed out. The effect is less interesting and figure-flattering than lumpy and bumpy. The blue works with her colouring, at least.

Victoria Silvstedt

Like crows, I love shiny silver things so it's not a surprise that I do like this dress. It helps that the colour looks fabulous against her skin and hair, but what I really love is the fabric itself. It's been engineered so that the scale of the pattern increases from the neck down to the hem and this adds interest to an otherwise simple, form-fitting dress.

Roberta Armani in Armani

I wonder if ankle-length dresses are coming back or if these dresses are being hemmed with flats instead of heels? If a dress is supposed to be ankle-length then it's important that it be short enough to not look like it's too short. Aside from this issue, the dress is attractive and definitely suits her.

Nathalie Baye

It's rare that someone wears a dress on the red carpet that is so unflattering. The problem is with the vertical lines which become brighter at the waist and wider at the hips, together with the skirt fabric. The brighter colour at the waist makes her belly look big an larger and the way the fabrics come together at the skirt makes the dress look tight at the hips. These design "features" combine to give her the appearance of a pouchy belly.

Style-wise, the black cardigan looks comfortable but not all that stylish and doesn't really work with this dress. Or any dress on the red carpet, for that matter.

Isabelle Huppert

Normally this type of neckline and bodice is very flattering... but normally it doesn't droop at the waist. I can't figure out if the dress is too big or her boobs too small or the dress is just wrong for her.

Sara Forestier in Elie Saab

Back in the old days, women wore a chemise over which they wore a corset. over that were her petticoats and finally her dress. This dress looks like the chemise/corset combination. This isn't all bad - I love corsets and the seaming on this dress looks like a corsets - but it's a weird combination.

Happy Diamonds are a Girl's Best Friend Gala

Bar Refaeli in Roberto Cavalli

Well, this is short, shiny, and tight, isn't it? Lucky for her and everyone else she's well-toned. I do love the black design over the blue sequinned towel.

Uma Thurman in Dolce & Gabbana

I may have already mentioned that I love lace, especially when it's layered over a dress. This combination is especially flattering because it shows a bit of skin without being vulgar. And are those flat shoes I spy? They're gorgeous!

Elsa Zylberstein in Elie Saab

It's one thing to wear a dress that's too long and it's quite another to wear a dress that's too long and that has a ginormous hem. It creates strange lines and breaks - like this. It's really not attractive, is it? The rest of the dress is a little bit bridal, a little bit sequinned, and washes her out completely. Fortunately her hair and makeup is gorgeous.

Naomi Campbell in Pucci

Very few people can wear micro-minis like this and I'm not convinced that she's one of those people right now. It might just be the way she's standing but her legs have a strange shape. The length aside, there's something about this outfit that appeals to me. Maybe it's the judicious use of sequins, maybe the lace-up front, maybe even the shoes.

Julia Saner in Pucci

This is one of the strangest dresses we've seen in a while. The mullet skirt and limp train appears to be made up of layers of ruffly chiffon and it looks quite bulky. The cutout under the bust further emphasize the fullness of the skirt and make her boobs look small. The back has criss-crossing lines keeping the dress decent and it appears that she chose her shoes to match that which is a little too matchy-matchy for my taste. She's a beautiful woman but this is not at all her best look.

Day 7 (May 17, 2011)

The Beaver premiere

Naomi Campbell in Azzedine Alaia

I like the balance between the bodice and the skirt here. It's easy for ruffles to be overwhelming but in this case they look just right. The colour is beautiful against her skin and the style suits her.

Bar Refaeli in Roberto Cavalli

The bodice reminds me of a competition speedo swimsuit. I wish I could unsee that because the dress fits fits her very well, the colour is fantastic, and I like the cutouts up at the top. If a competition speedo had sleeves and a skirt, it would look like this dress.

Celine Durand in Christophe Guillarme

I don't think she's wearing a bra and she should definitely be wearing one. Even so, there's no making this dress work for anyone because the neckline has such strange proportions. Those embellishments running down the center front don't much help, either. At least the colour works for her.

Tiziana Rocca

She looks like a present that has been gift-wrapped in green ribbon. I don't understand why anyone would voluntarily choose to wear this dress in public.

Adriana Karembeu

I watched a show about gypsies and their weddings in the UK the other day. They wear huge, poufy dresses much like this pink cotton candy dress for communion and weddings (although they don't usually go barefoot). This could be a wedding dress for a certain kind of woman. As a red carpet dress, it's certainly an interesting choice.

Svetlana Metkina

I love the fabric and the sheer bits at the bottom. There's something weird going on at the bustline, however. It's as though she thought the dress would expose too much and she put a patch of some grey fabric there to cover up. Unfortunately, the diagonal sequin lines make her look knock-kneed with wide hips.

Doutzen Kroes in Pucci

This is one clingy dress. Her panty lines are clearly visible on her hips and under her belly which is not really a good look for anyone. Those black ankle-strap shoes aren't the best choice for this dress although i love that clutch. All that aside, I love this dress because it's fresh and and I like its asymmetry.

Jodie Foster in Arman Prive (with Mel Gibson)

I love this dress - but then, she always looks beautiful in navy because it brings out her eyes. The asymmetry suits her and I love the soft fabric against her skin.

Nadja Auermann

These ankle-strap shoes with the toe strap are all over the place, aren't they? They've shown up in many colours at this event so they must be comfortable, even if they shorten the wearer's leg. But the shoes aren't all that important compared with this dress, which isn't quite as awesome as it could be. She looks a little rectangular without a defined waist and this makes her look bigger than she her actual size.

Aure Atika

There's not quite enough ruching to cover her tiny belly; instead, the fabric clings to her belly and makes it look bigger. She appears to have a pear-shaped body which is emphasized by the lack of width in the bodice. This is a very basic, very plain, not especially flattering dress.

Jelena Ristic in Armani (with Novak Djokovic)

Even though the colour of this dress is close to her skintone, it doesn't wash her out. In fact, this dress suits her figure and colouring. The ruching is gorgeous, the straps emphasize her shoulders, and the dress is the correct length. If only everyone at Cannes wore something this flattering!